VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Governor of Riau Islands, Ansar Ahmad, observes vaccinations of children in Bintan Regency. (ANTARA/Ogen/RA) - 

As many as 61,973 children in the 12-17 age group have been vaccinated in Riau Islands, according to spokesperson for the province's COVID-19 Response Task Force, Mochammad Bisri.

They account for 27.22 percent of the 228,245 children targeted by the COVID-19 vaccination program in the province, Bisri informed here on Saturday.

The task force is targeting to vaccinate the remaining 165,691 children by July 23, 2021, he said.

This would be in keeping with Riau Islands Governor Ansar Ahmad's target of completing the vaccinations of children aged 12 to 17 years by July 23, 2021, he added.

Meanwhile, the number of vaccinated people aged 18 years and above in Riau Islands has reached 857,337, accounting for 61.14 percent of the 1,140,997 targeted recipients, he disclosed.

The vaccination program for people aged 18 years and above is targeted to be completed by July 30, 2021. By doing so, the province can reach the 70-percent vaccination target required for achieving herd immunity or community immunity, he added.

"The remaining 70 percent of the target until July 30, 2021, is 124,295 people," he informed.

Therefore, each district and city must ramp up vaccinations in order to achieve the target set by the Riau Islands provincial government, he said.

He also urged people who have yet to get vaccinated so far to participate in the government's vaccination program to support efforts to break the chain of COVID-19 transmission.

"The government will not succeed in suppressing COVID-19 cases without the support of the residents," he emphasized.

The task force has requested additional vaccines from the central government as vaccine stocks have declined in the province, partly due to the enthusiastic response from residents for the vaccination drive, he said//ANT